Numbering-machine.



M. H. KERN.

NUMBERING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 10. 1914.

Patented Oct. 2

6, 1915. 2 Him-SHEET 1.

W My. Inventor:

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COLUMBIA PLANOORAPH 60., WASHINGTON. D. C

M. H. KERN.

NUMBERING MACHINE.

APPLICATION men JULY 10. 1914.

1,157,698, Patented 001:. 26, 1915.

' 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

.4 i 0 I e I S 124 I0 110 I ZZZ Inventor:

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MAXIMILIAN H. KERN, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO ROBERTS NUMBERINGMACHINE COMPANY,-OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, A CORPORATION OF NEVT YORK.

NUMBERING-MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Yatent.

Application filed July 10, 1914. Serial No. 859,120.

. numbering machines, and more particularly to devices for preventingtampering with the numeral wheels of such machines by unauthorizedpersons.

In the drawings I have shown in Figures 1 to inclusive, the applicationof my invention to a hand numbering machine of a type well known in theart, while Figs. 6 and 7 show the invention as applied to a numberingmachine of the sort which may be used in connection with a power press.

The invention consists of the elements, combinations and arrangements ofparts hereinafter described, and the advantages resulting therefrom willbe apparent from the description; while the scope of protectioncontemplated will appear from the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, which are to be taken as a part of thisspecification, and in which I have shown embodiments of the invention asat present preferred, Fi g. 1 is a front elevation of a numberingmachine of the hand-operated type, with my'invention applied thereto;Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the subject-matter of Fig. 1, look ingfrom the right, the main frame being broken away; Fig. 3 is a rearelevation; Fig. 4t is vertical cross sectional view taken on the line 44of Fig. 8 and looking in the direction of the arrows, the parts. beingshown in their normal positions; Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 4, butshowing the parts in the depressed or printing position; F ig. 6 is afront elevation with parts in section, illustratin a numbering machineapplied to a power press and including a correspondingly modifiedembodiment of my invention; and Fig. 7 is a vertical cross sectionalview taken on the line 7-7 of Fig. 2.

Referring to the devices shown in Figs. 1. to 5 inclusive, there is, asusual, a main frame 1 having a general U-shape, and provided with theusual cutout base plate 2. On the top of the frame 1 there is provided asleeve 3, within which works a reciprocatheads on the inside of theframe 1.

ing rod 4, whose upper end is provided with a handle 5 whereby it may bedepressed against the force of a coiled spring 6 mounted within thesleeve 3 and surrounding the rod 4. At the lower end of the rod 4: iscarried a printing frame 7, having studs 52 extending from the sidesthereof and adapted to slide in the vertical grooves 8 on the innersides of the arms of the frame 1. The printing frame carries a shaft 9on which are mounted a series of numeral wheels 10, at the side of eachof which is formed a ratchet wheel 11 having teeth adapted to be engagedby a spring-pressed de'tent-pawl 12, whose office is to prevent thewheels 11 from rotationeXcept in one direction, and also to preventover-rotation thereof. The several detent-pawls 12 are mounted on acommon supporting shaft 12 which extends acrossthe printing frame. Thereis also pivotally mounted on the shaft 9 an actuating pawlframe 14having a shaft 15 extending across it on which is mounted a series ofactuating pawls 16 adapted to engage the ratchet wheels 11 to advancethe numeral wheels in the usual manner. Projecting from each of the sidewalls of the pawl-frame 1 1- is a pin 17, which engages a cam slot 13formed in each one of a pair of plates 18, which plates 18 are. securedat their upper ends to the inside of the walls of the main frame 1, asby screws 1919, these screws having their The lower ends of the plates18 are secured by screws 2020, the heads of which are countersunk ontheoutside of the walls of the main frame 1. The heads of the screws20-2O are preferably provided with spanner holes, so that a specialtool'is required to unscrew them. When the handle 5 of the machine isdepressed, the pawl-frame 14 is rocked 011 the shaft 9 by reason of themovement of the pins 17 in the cam slots 13 in the side plates 18. Thiscauses the pawls 16 to move back over one tooth of the several ratchetwheels 11, as shown in Fig. 5, without accomplishing any movementthereof, but as the handle moves upwardly again, under the influence ofthe spring 6, the pins 17 again engage the slots 13 and rock thepawl-frame 1 1 back to its normal position, shown in Fig. 4, the pawls16,01- at least one or more of them, having, in the meantime,

engaged and moved one or more of the ratchet wheels 11 and therebycaused the nu- Patented Oct. as, rare.

meral wheels 10, or one or more of them, to progress n the usual manner.The mechanisms thus farrdescribed are not, in them- The result is thatthe ratchet wheels 11 and consequently the numeral wheels are locked inposition, and while the numeral wheels are of course nowaccessiblefrombelow the machine through the opening in the base 2, theycannot be moved or tampered with.

7 Between the walls of the main frame 1 there is also mounted an inkingframe 21 which is generally U-shaped, and the side walls of which areprovided with slots 53 (see Fig. 2) in which are engaged the studs 52 inthe sides of the printing frame 7. The side walls of this inkingframe 21are notched to v form projecting lugs 22 bent out at right angles,- andbetween these lugs 22 and the bottom of the frame 21 there is also anink pad 23 secured to a holder 24, which holder 24 has at itsforward'end an upturned flange 25 andat its rear end a spring clip 26adapted to engage in a hole in the bottom of'the inking frame 21 to lockthe ink pad holder 24 in position, as shown in Figs. 4 and 5. The inkingframe 21is provided with pins 54 extending'from each side, to which areconnected the endscof arms 55, the other ends of the'said arms beingpivoted to screws 56 in'the sides of the frame 1. The arms 55 arefurtheroconnected to the: studs 52, by means of arms 57, which arepivoted to the i studs 52 and'to the. arms 55 as at 58. The

screws 56being mounted in the frame 1 constitute pivots for the arms 55,and when the handle 5 is depressed and the printing frame 7 movesdownwardly, it carries the studs 52, on which are pivoted the arms 57,

which in turn are connected tothe'arms 55.

The inking frame 21 being pivotally connected to the arms 55 by means ofthe pins 54, causes the frame to move down and swing out from under thedescending printing frame, as shown in Fig. 5, the studs 52 forming thepivots for the inkingframe 21, the said studs engaging in the slots 53as described, so as to permit of the downward travel, as well as theupward swing.

From the description of the mechanism it will be evident that it wouldbe possible to tamper with the numeral wheels 10 when the machine isnormal, as the detent-pawls 12 are not in that position locked againstthe ratchets 11. Therefore, to prevent access to the numeral wheels whenthe position is in its normal position, as in Fig. 4, there is provideda shield 27, secured as by means of rivets 28, to the front edges of thecam plates 18. This effectually prevents access from the front of themachine, and to prevent access from the rear, there is provided a shield29, secured by rivets 30 to the rear of the printing frame 7 andsubstantially closing the same. Access from the bottom when the machineis in its normal or unlocked position is prevented by reason of the factthat'with the construction shown and described, it is impossible toremove the ink pad holder 24 from the inking frame, except when themachine is in a printing position, as in Fig. 5, because the holder 21-can only be removed by a straight vertical pull, as shown by the dottedlines of Fig. 5, and such a vertical pull can only be exerted when themachine is in the printing position and when consequently the numeralwheels are locked, so that it makes no difference whether the numeralwheels are exposed or not. The holder 24 cannot be removed when themachine is in the normal position, as it is in Fig. 4, because theupturned flange 25 on the holder is held by the bottom of the printingframe 7. Consequently, with my invention the numeral wheels aresubstantially shielded so long as they are not in printing position, andwhen they are in printing position they are locked. In addition to theprecautions already enumerated, I prefer to provide the screws 20 withspecial heads, requiring a special tool to remove them, thus to preventthe unauthorized moval of the plates 18 to which the shield 27 isriveted.

In the embodiment of the invention. shown in'Figs. 6 and 7, a numberingmachine is rotatably mounted on a stationary shaft 31, which is securedto some part of a power press, not shown. The position of the shaft 31is, however, such that when the machine is rotated in a mannerhereinafter described, the numeral wheels will engage the periphery of aplaten roll 41 mounted in the press, and register upon a strip of paperwhich is fed through the press the number set up on the numeral wheels.lhe numbering machine in this case consists of a frame 32 having a boss33 projecting from the rear wall and forming a bearing on which themachine rotates on the shaft 31. Means for rotating the frame 32 isprovided by securing to the rear wall of the frame, as by means of ascrew 34, one part of a clutchmember 35 adapted to be engaged by theother part 36 of the clutch which is slidahly mounted on the shaft 31and has connected to it, by means of a key 37, a pulley 38 driven by abelt 39, a forked lever 40 engag ing the member 36 to provide means foroperating the clutchmembers 35 and 36. The numbering machine has mountedbetween the side walls of the frame 32 on a shaft 109 a numbering headcomprising a series of numeral wheels 110, the printing surfaces ofwhich are formed in an arc whose center is the center of the shaft 31.The numeral wheels 110 are provided with ratchet wheels 111, as usual,adapted to be engaged by detent-pawls 112, and there is also mounted onthe shaft 109 an actuating pawl frame 114 which carries a shaft 42 onwhich are mounted actuating pawls 116 which engage the ratchet wheels111. The pawl-frame also carries a second shaft 115 which, in itsfunction, is analogous to the shaft 15 in the hand numbering machinepreviously described in that it serves as a lock for the detent-pawls112 when the numeral wheels are in the printing position. The actuatingpawl frame carries a knob 43 adapted to engage a cam 44 on the shaft 31and secured thereto by a pin 45. This knob 43 revolves around the cam44, and, in the position of Fig. 7 the knob 43 and consequently thepawl-frame and the actuating pawls 116, are held up by the retractivesprings 46, which are attached between the pawl-frame 114 and the mainframe 32, and the shaft 115 overlies the detents 112, keeping the samein locking engagement with the ratchet wheels 111, so that the numeralwheels cannot be moved. The cam 44 is of course shaped so that theupward swing of the pawl-frame under the influence of the springs 46 ispermitted. When, however, the printing head revolves around the shaft 31the knob 43 comes in contact with the cam surface on the cam 44, and thepawl-frame 114 and consequently the actuating pawls 116 are swungdownwardly on the pivot 109, so that one or more of the actuating pawls116 will act upon the corresponding ratchets 111 to advance one or moreof the numeral wheels, this advance being completed before the printinghead again reaches the printing position, and when this printingposition is reached the cam again permits the springs 46 to pull thepawl-frame back into the position shown in Fig. 7 where it looks thedetents 112 against the ratchets 111, thereby preventing any tamperingwith the numeral wheels while the latter are in the printing position.Any tampering with the numeral wheels while the apparatus is in otherthan printing; position is prevented by the provision of a casing 47surrounding the printing head and cam, this casing having a boss 48mount ed on the shaft 31 and secured thereto by a driven pin 49, and thecasing having also a flange 50 to provide a rear bearing for the casing,this flange surrounding a reduced portion of the clutch-member 35. Theprinting point of the apparatus is determined by a printing aperture 51,through which the engagement of the numeral wheels with the platen roll41 takes place. The numeral wheels are therefore inaccessible while theyare in non-printing position, and when they are in printing position,they are locked. The general theory of this apparatus is that thenumbers set up on the numeral wheels are advanced by one with eachrevolution.

It is obvious that the invention might be embodied in other forms thanthose shown and described, without departing fro-m the importantparticulars of the improvement, which reside in the provision of meansfor guarding the numeral wheels of a numbering machine against tamperingor interfen ence when the latter are in their accessible printingposition, and furthermore in the provision of means for inclosing andshielding the numeral wheels when in their nonprinting position.

Inasmuch as many changes could be made in the above construction, andmany appar' ently widely different embodiments of my invention could bemade without departing from the scope thereof, it is intended that allmatter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanyingdrawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limitingsense. It is also to be understood that the language used in thefollowing claims is intended to cover all the generic and specificfeatures of the invention herein described and all statements of thescope of the invention which, as a matter of language, might be said tofall therebetween.

What I claim is:

1. A numbering machine having a reciprocating numbering head comprisinga plurality of numeral wheels each of which has also a movement ofrotation, an actuating pawl adapted to rotate the numeral wheels, detentpawls therefor, and means associated with the actuating pawls coaXiallymounted with the numeral wheels and carrying the actuating pawls intoengagement with said detent pawls for locking the numeral wheels at onepoint in their bodily movement.

2. A numbering machine having a reciprocating numbering head comprisinga plurality of numeral wheels each of which has also a movement ofrotation, a swinging means for causing such rotation, an inclosure forthe numbering head having an opening through which the numeral wheelsare accessible at a point in the movement of the numbering head, detentpawls for said wheels, and means associated with said swinging meansslidably engageable with said detent pawls for locking the wheels at onepoint in their bodily movement.

3. A numbering machine having a vertically movable numbering headincluding a plurality of rotatable numeral wheels, de

tents for said wheels, and actuating'means comprising a pawl pivotallymounted on a movable frame, said frame being adapted to engage thedetents to lock the numeral Wheels against rotation.

4. A numbering machine comprising an inclosure having an opening, onewall of said inclosure being Stationary, a movable numbering headincluding a plurality of rotatable numeral wheels, means for moving thenumbering head cooperative to rotate the numeral wheels, said meanspresenting the numbering head at such opening, and a -member adapted toswing into or out of posaid opening, and a member adapted to move intoand out of position between the opening and the numbering head, themovements of said member being controlled by the reciprocation of thehead, and said member be ng out of position when the head is presentedat the opening, said member carrying an inking pad detachably connectedthereto, the pad being removable therefrom when the member 1s swung outfrom between the head and the opening, and being held against removal inany other position. 6. A numbermg machine comprising a plurality ofrotatable numeral wheels, detent-pawls for the same and actuating pawls,a pivot-frame carrying the actuating pawls, said frame adapted to holdthe detents in engagement with the numeral wheels.

7. A numbering machine comprising a. plurality of rotatable numeralwheels, detent pawls for the same and actuating pawls, a swinging framecarrying the actuating pawls, and means adjacent the frame for swingingsaidframe into engagement with the free end of said detcnt pawls therebylocking the wheels.

8. A mimbering machine comprising a plurality of rotatable numeralwheels, detent pawls for the same and actuating pawls, a movable framecarrying the actuating pawls, said frame adapted to engage and hold thedetents in. engagement with the numeral wheels at one point of its movement.

9. A numbering machine comprising a plurality of rotatable numeralwheels, detent pawls for the same and actuating pawls, a reciprocatingframe carrying the actuating pawls and adapted in one of its movementsto cause the actuating pawls to rotate the numeral wheels and in itsopposite movement to engage and hold the detent pawls in engagement withthe numeral wheels.

In testimony whereof I aiiix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

MAXIMILIAN H. KERN.

Witnesses HELEN V. Firzrnrmon, MARY H.- Lnwrs.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each. by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C.

